Insole with seahorse reinforcing element

ABSTRACT

A insole with a seahorse reinforcing element is a combination of a soft insole and harder reinforcing element. The reinforcing element is integrally formed with a transverse arch support having the shape similar to the seahorse mouth and crown, an medial longitudinal arch support having the shape of the seahorse vertical body, and a heel support having the shape of the seahorse hooked tail. By strengthening the support of the insole, the invention can prevent discomfort in the transverse arch and the medial longitudinal arch due to sinking. At the same time, the invention reinforces the support for the starting position of walking, thereby saving user&#39;s efforts.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of Invention

The invention relates to an insole and, in particular, to an insole witha seahorse reinforcing element.

2. Related Art

According to the foot anatomy, the foot structure contains 26 bones ofirregular shapes, 30 joints, and more than 100 ligaments, therebyforming a complex but stable structure. The structure is usually dividedinto the heel, the foot middle and forefoot parts.

The heel includes the calcaneus in direct contact with the ground, andthe talus above the calcaneus and forming the ankle joint along thetibia.

The foot middle part consists of five small tarsals (including thenavicular, cuboid and three cuneiforms). These bones are tightlyconnected by ligaments, forming the outer arch and the inner arch of thefoot.

The forefoot contains 19 bones, including five metatarsals and 14phalanges that make up the toes.

Also, according to foot biomechanics, the human body stands on the firstmetatarsal, the fifth metatarsal, and the calcaneus. The arch among thethree points of the foot then supports the body. The medial longitudinalarch between the first metatarsal and the calcaneus can provide a modeststretch and torque and absorb the reaction from the ground while walkingor running, thereby absorbing shocks on various terrains. While walking,the heel receives pressure from the ground first. Afterwards, thepressure moves from the fifth metatarsal head to the first metatarsalhead. The person is then able to move forward and walk.

The above paragraphs describe the mechanical principles on the footstructure corresponding to standing and walking. To help relievepressure on the feet, the insoles have to strengthen their support atappropriate positions. After the pressure on the feet is released, theperson can gain more comfort.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the foregoing, an objective of the invention is to provide aninsole that can reduce pressure on the foot and increase comfort.

To achieve the above-mentioned objective, the disclosed insolereinforcing structure involves the combination of a harder reinforcingelement to the soft insole of single density. The soft insole thusobtains better supports at the transverse arch, the medial longitudinalarch, and the heel.

The reinforcing element consists of a transverse arch support, a mediallongitudinal arch support, and a heal support integrally formed into ahard plastic with the shape of a seahorse.

The transverse arch support has a shape similar to the seahorse mouthand crown. It includes an arch metatarsal pad support and a forefootinner support extending to the first metatarsal head.

The medial longitudinal arch support has a shape similar to the verticalbody of the seahorse. It includes a plane base extending from themetatarsal support downward to the heel and a curved wing supporting themedial longitudinal arch between the first metatarsal and the calcaneus.

The heel support has a shape similar to the hooked tail of the seahorse.The plane base forms a U-shaped cup pad around the calcaneus forcovering the heel.

By reinforcing the supports of the three key areas, the transverse arch,the medial longitudinal arch and the heel, the transverse arch and themedial longitudinal arch feel less discomfort due to sinking. Since thestarting position for walking is strengthened, the invention achievesthe goal of saving efforts.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other features, aspects and advantages of the invention willbecome apparent by reference to the following description andaccompanying drawings which are given by way of illustration only, andthus are not limitative of the invention, and wherein:

FIG. 1 is a three-dimensional exploded view of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The present invention will be apparent from the following detaileddescription, which proceeds with reference to the accompanying drawings,wherein the same references relate to the same elements.

Please refer to FIG. 1 for a three-dimensional exploded view of theinvention. The invention combines a single-density soft insole with aseahorse-shaped reinforcing element with higher hardness. The bottom ofthe single-density insole is formed with a concave block 10 in advancecorresponding to the shape of the reinforcing element for thecombination thereof. The reinforcement element mainly provides strongsupports to the transverse arch 11, the medial longitudinal arch 12, andthe heel 13 of the single-density insole. That is, the reinforcingelement is integrally formed hard plastic consisting of a transversearch support 20, a medial longitudinal arch support 21, and a heelsupport 22.

The transverse arch support 20 has a shape similar to the mouth andcrown of a seahorse. It includes an arch metatarsal pad support 201 anda forefoot inner support 202 extending to the first metatarsal head.Since the inner side of the forefoot is the starting point for pushingforward as one walks, it is necessary to strengthen the support.Therefore, the forefoot inner support 202 is deliberately molded to havethe design of reinforcing ribs 2021. In this embodiment, there areseveral loop ribs.

The medial longitudinal arch support 21 has a shape similar to thevertical body of a seahorse. It includes a plane base 211 extending fromthe metatarsal pad support 201 downward to the calcaneus, and a curvedwing 212 supporting the medial longitudinal arch from the firstmetatarsal to the calcaneus. To prevent the curved wing 212 fromproviding excessive support to the medial longitudinal arch and causingdiscomfort, the curved wing is cut to have several notches 2121, therebyproviding better elasticity. In this embodiment, the curved wing is cutinto three parallel grooves.

The heel support 22 has a shape similar to hooked tail of a seahorse.The plane base 211 forms a U-shaped cup pad 221 around the calcaneus tocover the heel.

The reinforcing element strengthens the supports to the transverse arch,the medial longitudinal arch and the heel. Thus, the transverse arch andthe medial longitudinal arch can avoid the discomfort caused due tosinking. As the starting point for walking receives reinforced support,the invention can achieve the goal of saving labor.

Although the invention has been described with reference to specificembodiments, this description is not meant to be construed in a limitingsense. Various modifications of the disclosed embodiments, as well asalternative embodiments, will be apparent to persons skilled in the art.It is, therefore, contemplated that the appended claims will cover allmodifications that fall within the true scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:
 1. An insole with a seahorse reinforcing elementformed by combing a soft insole with a harder reinforcing element, thebottom of the soft insole being formed with a concave block according tothe shape of the reinforcing element for the combination thereof, andthe reinforcing element consisting of a transverse arch support, amedial longitudinal arch support, and a heel support integrally formedtogether, wherein: the transverse arch support has a shape similar tothe seahorse mouth and crown, and includes an arch metatarsal padsupport and a forefoot inner support extending to the first metatarsalhead; the medial longitudinal arch support has a shape similar to thevertical body of the seahorse, and includes a plane base extending fromthe metatarsal support downward to the heel and a curved wing supportingthe medial longitudinal arch between the first metatarsal and thecalcaneus; the heel support has a shape similar to the hooked tail ofthe seahorse, with the plane base forming a U-shaped cup pad around thecalcaneus to cover the heel; the reinforcing element strengthenssupports to the transverse arch, the medial longitudinal arch, and theheel so that the transverse arch and the medial longitudinal arch areprevented from experiencing discomfort due to sinking, and the startingposition for walking is reinforced to save labor.
 2. The insole with aseahorse reinforcing element of claim 1, wherein the forefoot innersupport has reinforcing ribs.
 3. The insole with a seahorse reinforcingelement of claim 2, wherein the reinforcing ribs are a plurality of loopribs.
 4. The insole with a seahorse reinforcing element of claim 1,wherein the curved wing has at least one notch to increase theelasticity thereof.